Big Data and the Welfare State
How the Information Revolution Threatens Social Solidarity

This book explores, theoretically and empirically, the consequences of 'Big Data' for the politics of social protection.

Torben Iversen (Author), Philipp Rehm (Author)

9781009151399, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 19 May 2022

256 pages
22.8 x 15.1 x 1.5 cm, 0.4 kg

'… this is an outstanding book that should be read widely - within the scholarly political economy community and more broadly.' Timothy Hicks, Public Choice

A core principle of the welfare state is that everyone pays taxes or contributions in exchange for universal insurance against social risks such as sickness, old age, unemployment, and plain bad luck. This solidarity principle assumes that everyone is a member of a single national insurance pool, and it is commonly explained by poor and asymmetric information, which undermines markets and creates the perception that we are all in the same boat. Living in the midst of an information revolution, this is no longer a satisfactory approach. This book explores, theoretically and empirically, the consequences of 'big data' for the politics of social protection. Torben Iversen and Philipp Rehm argue that more and better data polarize preferences over public insurance and often segment social insurance into smaller, more homogenous, and less redistributive pools, using cases studies of health and unemployment insurance and statistical analyses of life insurance, credit markets, and public opinion.

1. Introduction
2. A theoretical framework
3. A brief analytical history of social protection
4. Private markets for life and health insurance
5. Credit markets
6. Labor market risks
7. Conclusion.

Subject Areas: Political economy [KCP], Comparative politics [JPB], Welfare & benefit systems [JKSB]